Netflix says its doubling down on L.A. even as it expands in New Jersey

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Set us as preferred When Netflix brought the Will Ferrell golf comedy “The Hawk” to the Woodland Hills Country Club last year, it was the first big production to shoot there in more than two years.Nearly 300 cast and crew members came through the gates.The production used more than 370 local vendors and shot at 41 locations.For years, the club could count on that kind of work.

Movie shoots and recurring TV shows such as “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “SWAT” helped keep members’ dues down and offset repair costs.But as big productions left Los Angeles, the golf course became a backdrop mostly for commercials, magazine spreads and social media shoots.“A few clubs locally won’t even allow a camera on-site, let alone film crews,” said Rick Stegall, the club’s general manager.

“But our club is very open to it....

There’s just a lot of benefits.”“The Hawk,” which debuted last month, was among 46 productions Netflix says it filmed in L.A.last year, with a similar number planned for this year.Even as the streaming giant ramps up its filming outside California, Netflix executives say L.A.

remains a vital film hub for the company at a time when the city has been reeling from the exodus of film crews.On-location film shoots dropped 13% in the second quarter from a year earlier, according to FilmLA.“L.A.

is our home.… Our commitment is there to the city and state, and that, for me, is about showing up consistently with productions every year,” Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said in an interview.Like other producers, Netflix has benefited from improvements to California’s tax incentive program intended to stem so-called runaway production, though Bajaria said the program is not as “comprehensive” as it needs to be.“Even though we’re definitely encouraged by the way California has moderni...